Who'd have thought Helen of Troy would cause so much trouble? The casting of Kenyan-Mexican actress Lupita Nyong'o as the impossibly beautiful Spartan noble in Christopher Nolan’s upcoming film, The Odyssey, has sparked outrage from reactionary content creators. One YouTuber even suggested that Greece should sue Nolan.

Few people know more about these squabbles than Emily Wilson, a classicist who translated Homer's epics into modern English. Her choice of the word 'complicated' to describe Odysseus has drawn fire from 'armchair classicists'. Critics argue her translation is too contemporary and softens the brutal realities of ancient Greek society.

Wilson’s translation offers a sympathetic view of previously monstrous figures, such as the cyclops, and affords dignity to slaves. Such interpretations challenge the foundational myths of Western civilization, viewed by some as white, patriarchal supremacy. Classicist Richard Whitaker criticizes Wilson's work for 'flattening out the complexity' of Homer’s epic.

Despite these controversies, Wilson remains focused on her mission: accurately representing the text and rhythm of Homer. Her translation includes 12,109 lines transposed into iambic pentameter, the most common meter in English poetry. For Wilson, modernizing ancient texts is a way to keep them relevant for contemporary audiences.